


Be Brave [Whumptober 2020]

by chemically_imbalanced_romance



Series: Whumptober 2020/Cult AU [6]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Blood, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Cults, Gaslighting, Gen, Guns, Humiliation, Kidnapping, Knives, Manipulation, Restraints, Stabbing, Strangulation, Torture, Violence, Vomiting, a person in a cage, beatings, lmk if i missed anything please, reference to murder/hate crimes/child death/minor character death, treating people like property
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:41:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26854618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chemically_imbalanced_romance/pseuds/chemically_imbalanced_romance
Summary: [Whumptober 2020 Day 6; Cult AU] Virgil and Janus are punished for trying to escape.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders
Series: Whumptober 2020/Cult AU [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947007
Comments: 8
Kudos: 58
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Be Brave [Whumptober 2020]

**Author's Note:**

> No. 6: Please… [No More]

_ October 9th. 12:55 am.  _

Virgil hyperventilated beside him. 

Bates' velvet voice boomed over the auditorium. He didn’t need a microphone. You’d think there’d be cheers, applause when he took breaths, but no— Everyone sat on the edge of their seats, deadly silent. 

“...after we showed our  _ good will _ in bringing Janus mercifully back to us, after  _ saving _ him from the trash can that lives outside our family, and even going as far to rescue his friend and cut into more of  _ our resources _ to feed and house him, they conspire against us and try to  _ abandon _ us.” 

Bates’ voice cut into his chest. He dragged in slow, quiet breaths. Everything in him screamed to reach out to Virgil, take his hand and promise him they’d survive this, but the ropes dug into his wrists and the tape wouldn’t budge from his mouth. 

“We simply cannot take this abuse any longer. We’re doing a majority vote here. We can either release these poor victims back into the cesspool and the murder and the rape and the garbage, or we can give them a little taste of it, here, in safety, and let them decide whether to stay or not. Everyone in favour of release?”

It was no surprise when everyone’s hands stayed down. Bates asked the second option, and among the hands raised were whoops, applause, and shouting. Janus shivered. 

“As much as I’d love the honour to help them both, I simply can’t divide my attention. It wouldn’t be fair to them, anyway. I ask my closest partner, Styx, to help me with the lesson. Remus, you come up, too, get ready to step in.” 

Styx climbed the steps to the stage with a grin. He unfolded a long, black leash and clipped it to Virgil’s collar. “Don’t worry, pet. We know you’re just confused. We’re going to save you.” 

To the side of the stage, Bates pulled a newspaper off a table. He held it open towards the audience. “Three days ago four men broke into a single parents’ apartment, tied her and her child down, and forced the two to watch as they stabbed them to death. Why don’t we start there?” 

The crowd cheered. Sweat dripped down Janus’ back, pooled on his top lip. Tears streamed down Virgil’s red face. 

Bates and Styx turned them around to face each other. The crowd's energy was a white noise, cicadas buzzing in Janus’ ears. Virgil stared at him with wide, terrified eyes. Bates and Styx unsheathed their knives, and tears pricked Janus’ eyes. 

He couldn’t breathe. 

Bates rested a hand on his shoulder and leaned down to kiss his cheek. “Be brave. At least you’ll survive this. Remus?”

Remus rushed over and knelt between them, gesturing over Janus. “You want to go under the belly button, Bates. Any higher and he’ll bleed out too quickly for me to help. Stay away from the chest and anything above,  _ including _ the shoulders— That goes for both of you. Lower arms and legs are okay as long as you let me in one time.” He turned to Virgil and rested a hand over his abdomen. “Styx,  _ stay away _ from his abdomen. His ovaries, uterus, all of that stuff will bleed out far too quickly and he will die.”

Virgil’s hyperventilating reached a head as he choked on his sobs and the gag in his mouth. 

“I know you two have a lesson to teach,” he said lowly, “but please know when to stop.” 

Bates waved him away, and it was like a death sentence. Janus sucked in a choking gasp as blunt paint erupted in his abdomen, stealing all his breath.  _ Did he fucking punch me?  _ It wasn’t until Bates yanked the knife out only to drive it back in that he knew what happened. He cried out, warm liquid running down his stomach and thighs. 

Virgil was so quiet Janus worried he was dead. Through his blurred vision, Virgil bit his lip hard enough to split the skin, eyes squeezed shut. Bates stabbed him several more times, in the forearm and calves, before sheathing the bloody knife and stepping aside. He gestured to Janus, and Remus rushed in with his backpack. 

Styx held Virgil up by his leash and drove the knife into his shin. Virgil sobbed as Remus laid Janus on his back. He undid his binds and stretched his arms and legs out, cutting away the bottom half of his shirt and away his jeans. Janus’ vision swam as Remus worked on stopping the bleeding. He was vaguely aware of his legs being elevated, something pushing against his back to prop him upright, Remus talking, but he was hot all over and he wanted to throw up. 

He couldn’t tell how long it had been before Remus hurried back into the wing and Bates lowered Janus’ legs. Virgil cried out as Styx dropped his. 

“Are you starting to get it?” Bates laughed. “ _ This _ is the kind of thing you were running back to. Is this really where you want to be? Janus?” 

He pulled Janus gag out, and he gasped for breath. “No,” he managed. “No, I’m sorry, please-”

“We’re not done yet.” He shoved the gag back in and picked up a piece of printer paper. He held it to the audience. “This is a picture of 11-year-old Sadie Winters. She was walking home from school when an unknown person choked her to death and left her there. Shall we move on to poor Sadie?” 

Bates pulled the string out of his hoodie and wrapped the two ends around his fists. Styx clamped Virgil’s leash around his throat and held tight. 

“Don’t be so impatient, Styx,” Bates sighed before the hoodie string tied around Janus’ neck. 

“Okay, you have to be quick!” Remus cried hastily. “I’m serious, don’t push it, you can kill them in minutes!” 

Ringing filled Janus’ ears as his vision blurred. Black spots grew, and it was like his head was ready to explode. His pain washed away as his eyes rolled back. 

He gasped as Bates smacked him in the face, eyes flying open. “You ready to go again?”

“Bates-”

His voice broke, his throat screaming. Bates hauled him back upright and pulled the string back around his throat. A few seconds later, the black swallowed his vision once more. His entire body tingled. He was still half-passed out as his stomach lurched and vomit forced its way up his throat. 

“Get back, get back! Hey, sit up.” Remus’ voice was soft in his ear as he helped Janus to sit upright. His stomach contracted and pulled, sending agony through Janus’ body, as he retched onto the stage, his vision dark, spotty, and blurred. “Bates, I obviously can’t tell you what to do, but if you don’t move on, they will die.” 

“Well, that certainly isn’t the point of this exercise,” Bates huffed. “We’ll move on. We only have a few more to get through then everyone can break for dinner.” 

“Shh, shh, you’re going to be okay,” Remus hushed as he took out Janus’ gag. “You have to breathe, please breath, Jan-Jan.”

“I can’t do any more,” he whimpered. “Please stop him.” 

Remus cupped his face. “I can’t. You know I can’t. But I’m going to make sure you two are okay, alright? Just hold on a little longer.” 

Janus buried his face in Remus’ shoulder and gripped onto him.  _ “Please.”  _

“I’m so sorry it’s come to this, Janus,” Bates said with a frown. “Are we starting to realize why you’re better off here?”

He nodded frantically. “Yes, yes, I’ll never try to leave again, please,  _ please _ stop, please no more!” 

Bates hummed, watching him curiously. His gaze slid to Virgil, who grimaced as Styx stroked his cheek. “And Virgil? How are you feeling?”

“The only people doing this to us is  _ you _ ,” he snarled, “you sick fuck, let us go!” 

Dread washed over Janus like he’d been set on fire. Bates sighed. “I guess we continue. Poor, confused thing.” He came over and ran his fingers through Janus’ hair. 

“Please let me go,” Janus whimpered. “I won’t leave you again.”

He smiled. “No. You two are a team. I can’t risk him corrupting you again.” 

Bates strolled to the front of the stage and announced their next lesson. Remus kissed Janus’ forehead, and, as much as Janus begged him not to, left back to the wing. 

His eyes locked with Virgil’s. Virgil sobbed, his face scarlet, his hair matted with sweat. That fire he had, the anger and ferocity that fueled him, was dying out. It used to be a wall of bubbling magma behind his eyes. Now it was nothing more than a birthday candle.

**Author's Note:**

> I had to do a lot of really sad research for this lol.


End file.
